California man gets 18 years for trafficking meth, fentanyl to Hawaii in tin cans

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A California man who used tin cans to traffic drugs to Hawaii was sentenced to more than 18 years in prison Monday.

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Court records reveal Bill Van Nguyen, also known as “Sau”, sold and distributed over thirty-four and a half pounds of methamphetamine and eleven and a half pounds of fentanyl and fentanyl-laced pills to an undercover law enforcement employee in Hawaii.

The sales totaled about $118,050 and took place between April 2023 and April 2025. Shipments were concealed in canned goods labeled as hominy and condensed milk.

Nguyen, 57, was ordered to serve five years of probation once his prison sentence is completed. He’ll also have to forfeit proceeds from the sales.

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Prosecutors say Nguyen worked with another California resident, Dylan Dang, to complete the sales. Dang is scheduled for sentencing in Honolulu on July 7th after he pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl.

The FBI worked with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Honolulu Police Department, and Orange County Sheriff’s Department to investigate the case.

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